Support of Health Information Technology

The System determined in 2006 that information technology for the LSU Health Sciences Centers and LSU hospitals should be centrally coordinated. A primary component of this initiative was the implementation of a complete electronic health record (EHR) system for the 10 LSU hospitals.

One hundred clinical subsystems were identified that comprised a complete electronic health record. Consultants were hired to assist in estimating the cost, duration, and scope of the project, and the 5-year budget estimate developed was $84 million in one-time costs and $5.6 million per year in start-up costs. An Operations Council was created to coordinate central management of all IT operations and to lead the effort to implement the electronic health records system for LSU’s ten hospitals.

Coordination within the LSU system and across state agencies was a goal, so members of the Operations Council included representatives from the hospitals, the Health Sciences Center campuses, the LSU Baton Rouge campus, and DHH; the OIT liaison was also invited to Council meetings.

The Legislature has appropriated $33 million towards the one-time costs for the new EHR system and initial indications are that the 10 LSU hospitals will receive $64 million in federal stimulus money through Medicare and Medicaid incentive payments over a four-year period for use of EHR Systems.

In November 2011, LSU launched the Patient Electronic Health Information and Care Network, known as PELICAN, at LSU Health Shreveport. The electronic health records system, which is in use at the LSU Hospital and associated clinics, will eventually grow to include other LSU hospitals and clinics statewide by mid-2013. When completely deployed, the system that makes real-time clinical data available to medical providers will be the first public, statewide electronic medical records system in the United States.